Warrant: Man killed Macon woman as toddler slept nearby

A Macon man admitted to fatally stabbing his girlfriend in the chest as her 3-year-old son slept nearby in a motel room, according to an arrest warrant.

Ali Lamont Tanner, 39, told investigators he wrapped the body of Shauntrice Michele Williams in a bedspread Saturday and threw her in the dumpster outside the Discovery Inn on Chambers Road, the warrant stated.

He said he tossed the knife in a patch of woods behind the motel.

Authorities found Williams’ body at the Taylor County landfill about 1:30 p.m. Wednesday. Bibb County Coroner Leon Jones said Williams’ family has been notified of the discovery, and an autopsy was planned for Thursday morning.

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Family and friends of the 27-year-old woman hit the streets Wednesday morning looking for any sign of her.

They searched abandoned and boarded-up houses along Interstate 75 between Napier and Montpelier avenues.

“We want closure,” said Chiquita Johnson, a friend of the Williams family.

Williams’ sister, Shauntorial Bell, 26, said she had tried unsuccessfully to reach Williams “through various types of social media,” according to a missing person report filed Monday.

The report noted that Bell’s mother said Tanner threatened the victim on Thanksgiving, stating he was going to kill Williams because he believed she was cheating on him.

Tanner, who went to the Bibb County Sheriff’s office Tuesday and was arrested Wednesday, faces murder and aggravated assault charges, as well as a probation violation. No bond was set when he went before Magistrate Judge Jane Reeves.

He had been in state prison until February, but no records were available because probation cases are confidential, a Georgia Department of Corrections spokeswoman said. Tanner has been in and out of prison multiple times since 2004, she said.

The Telegraph archives show Tanner was indicted for first-degree arson and burglary after a Plant Street apartment fire in January of 2002.

He is now being held at the Bibb County Law Enforcement Center.

Although the Bibb sheriff’s office did not release information about Williams’ death until Wednesday morning, the word began to spread on Facebook by Tuesday evening.

The last post believed to have been made by Shauntrice “Msindependent” Williams, mentions getting to bed early Thanksgiving night due to pending surgery in the morning.

Her post from Thursday morning stated she was thankful for “my wonderful kids, health, n life.”

Anyone with information is urged to call Macon Regional Crimestoppers at 877-68-CRIME.

Telegraph writer Joe Kovac Jr. contributed to this report. Information from Telegraph archives was used in this report.